The nation’s only independent conservation facility for endangered frogs and salamanders is moving to Decatur

Mark Mandica has spent the past few months sweating about the fate of the thousand-odd amphibians under his care: frogs, toads, salamanders, and even some snakes and other reptiles. With a bushy gray beard, a ponytail, and glasses, Mark is not some hippie frog version of the Tiger King. He’s the cofounder and executive director of Amphibian Foundation —the only independent, non-zoo affiliated amphibian conservation organization with a brick-and-mortar facility in the entire nation.

Since its foundation in 2016, Amphibian Foundation had operated out of the Blue Heron Nature Preserve in Buckhead. But it faced an uncertain future earlier this year when the City of Atlanta condemned the building, leaving Mark and his cofounder and wife, Crystal Mandica, scrambling for a new headquarters.